


With the right help, anything is possible.

by BunnyJess



Category: Batman (Comics), Batman - All Media Types, Nightwing (Comics), Red Hood and the Outlaws (Comics)
Genre: Alfred Pennyworth deserves a medal, Arrest, BAMF Alfred Pennyworth, Bruce Wayne is a Good Parent, Dr Harleen Quinzel is reformed, Explosion, F/M, Gen, Healing, Minor Violence, Psychologists & Psychiatrists, family love, helping family heal, mentions of Harley Quinn - Freeform, nothing could be done with the metal until they came along, the African scientists are from Wakanda
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-05-20
Updated: 2018-05-20
Packaged: 2019-05-09 09:27:04
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,484
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14713470
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BunnyJess/pseuds/BunnyJess
Summary: A young Bruce Wayne is struggling with his emotions and violent outbursts; until one Mr Alfred Pennyworth makes a monumentally life changing decision. It's a decision that ends up helping more than just the broken billionaire.





	With the right help, anything is possible.

The cell door slammed against the metal stoppers and Bruce slowly walked out of the small concrete room. Alfred stood patiently in the waiting room as Bruce was un-cuffed before him. He thanked the officer and turned to leave as Bruce followed “I take it you were well looked after Master Bruce,” Bruce nodded his low hung head. “Because I heard the three thugs you took on aren’t so good.” Still Bruce said nothing as they approached the Rolls Royce. Alfred stopped abruptly before the car, blocking the handle from Bruce’s reach; “I swore to follow your parent’s wishes. I allowed you to make your own decisions up until now, but I will not stand idly by and watch you sink further into your abundant problems.” Bruce’s head finally lifted and his shocked look met Alfred’s gaze. “As of the moment we reach the Manor you are on house arrest until the psychiatrist and psychologist I’ve hired to live in the east wing agree that you have been sufficiently treated for your neurological and psychological trauma. A fifteen year old boy should not be able to hospitalise three fully grown men.”

As the months passed Bruce destroyed countless works of art and artefacts, Alfred totalled the cost in the millions but he cared very little about that because slowly, ever so slowly, he saw fragments of the Bruce he knew unravelling. Alfred was full of nothing but praise for the two mental health experts as the work they were doing with Bruce was not easy. Watching your parents’ murder before even reaching double digits was not something you easily worked through and the violent anger that burned deep inside of Bruce had been worsening as of late. His ability to understand his own emotions, let alone those of the people around him, had all but disappeared.

Bruce had spoken of a promise he made to his parents, a promise to end all crime in Gotham and to protect what was good and pure in humans. Bruce had even been talking about some cockamamie idea which involved dressing up in a costume to put fear into those he fought. Alfred had been willing to work with him on this but seeing the rage he deposited on these people spoke of the dysfunction within him and his need for professional help.

Dr Shirani and Dr Ulzbeck climbed into the Rolls and Bentley, their cases already stored neatly in the trunks of the cars. Their work was done and although they had been permanent residents of Wayne Manor for the last 3 years they had finally concluded that Bruce was healed enough to be released from house arrest and to only need monthly visits from a mental health nurse and quarterly appointments with the local psychiatrist who was about to have the handover of a lifetime from Dr Shirani. As they waved off the doctors Bruce turned to Alfred and embraced him. Bruce now dwarfed the butler and weighed twice as much, with little to do whilst under house arrest Bruce had made excellent use of the Manor gym and even for an eighteen year old he was now a prime example of the human condition, he had even taught himself just about every martial art in existence and become a proficient gymnast too.

“Thank you Alfred. This is something I never would have admitted to but something I always would have regretted not doing.” a single tear rolled down his cheek as the faithful servant looked lovingly back at him. “Master Bruce, you need not thank me. When it comes to family these are the things one does.” Bruce chuckled softly, “that’s just it Alfred, family is what truly matters, and with that I have a question to which I hope you will agree.” Alfred looked puzzled, not quite sure where Bruce was going with this line of conversation. “Since my parents were murdered you have been a constant, a role model and most importantly, a father figure. There is however no acknowledgement of this, so I would like to ask you if you would agree to me taking your last name.” Alfred’s jaw dropped, never had he expected this. “Master Bruce; what of your family’s legacy?” “It will live on,” Bruce replied, “through Wayne Enterprises, but my family is you Alfred and these are the things one does.”

“Master Bruce I would be honoured. It has been my pleasure watching you become the man you are today.” Bruce barked a thunderous laugh, “I couldn’t be happier and it’s all thanks to you, Dad.”

The years flew by and Wayne Enterprises only grew now that Bruce Pennyworth was leading it into a new era as CEO and Chairman, along with his trusted COO Lucius Fox. The two men were a business juggernaut and WE’s profits were twenty per cent higher than when Bruce first stepped into his position. Together, Wayne Enterprises and the Pennyworth Foundation were tackling the horrendous; crime, unemployment, poverty and homelessness problems that plagued Gotham and figures were slowly going down and that’s when it happened.

The bomb killed one hundred people, another hundred were critically injured but thanks to technological advancements made by WE they were able to save them. When the video hit the press it was revealed that there had only been one target, the mayor of Gotham, but that the person responsible cared little for collateral damage. The man responsible gave no real name; instead he called himself The Joker. His face was white as a ghost and heavily scared at the corners of his mouth giving him a permanent smile. He was clearly insane but also clearly in control of his actions. This man was pure evil.

Bruce walked along the overcrowded corridor of Gotham General Hospital, trying to lend a hand where ever possible. He couldn’t believe the destruction one man could cause, the hate one man could spread so easily. Bruce was overcome with grief for the city he loved, but also a great sadness in the coming weeks as it was announced that the police had no clue of how to catch this embodiment of evil. Bruce had locked himself away for a week, trying to remember all the strategies Shirani and Ulzbeck had taught him. When he finally emerged Alfred thought he looked like a man full of fierce determination and one who had seen enough.

“Dad, do you remember all those years ago, before Shirani and Ulzbeck, when I told you of my plan to fight crime?” Alfred rubbed circles into his eyelids, “yes Master Bruce I do, what of it?” He said, trying to hide his fear at the words his son was about to say. “I’ve put a lot of thought into it and I’ve decided to restart that plan, not in the same way, but in a way that will allow me to keep my promise to my parents.” Alfred’s shoulders sank, “please Bruce I beg you to think this through, think of all the work you did!” Alfred saw the look in Bruce’s eyes and saw the sorrow for his city filling them. “Alfred, I can’t stand idly by while evil tears apart the city I have worked so hard to save, we have worked so hard to save; especially when I am the only one with the resources to do anything about it. What good are all my billions when I do nothing with them?” Bruce was almost pleading with Alfred now. “Okay Master Bruce, where do we start?”

They stood surveying the vast cave network beneath the manor, the space had gone unused in years but Bruce now had grand ideas for the empty space full of potential. “We’re going to need help with this, we need to contact Lucius and see if there’s anything from WE that we can utilise to make this happen. He’s the only one I trust enough to let in on this so make an appointment for him to come to the house. This needs to be done in person.”

Alfred smiled, “I couldn’t agree more Master Bruce, I shall send the invite now.” He said as he tapped away on the tablet in his palm. “How many times do I have to say, don’t call me Master Bruce anymore?” Alfred laughed and placed a hand gently on Bruce’s shoulder, “at least one more time sir”.

Alfred opened the large oak door and Lucius Fox strode into the grand entrance hall. “Thanks Alfred, now where’s Bruce? This visit is all rather mysterious.” Alfred beckoned Lucius to follow him, “All will become clear soon Mister Fox.” Lucius was lead through the manor he had visited many times over the years, slowly but surely recognising less and less as he was led into parts of the manor he’d never been too before they reached a lonely service elevator that held none of the usual charm Lucius had come to expect from the manor. When the gates opened the two men were met by a string of lamps hung strategically throughout the cavernous space and Bruce stood in the middle of a rocky prominence drawing on a piece of paper which lay on a temporary table.

“If I thought that invite was cloak and dagger, this takes it to a whole new level mister Pennyworth.” Lucius was completely confused now, any ideas he had about the meeting had long been thrown out the window.

“There’s an evil in this city that no one has been able to do anything about. I want to change that Lucius. What good is it sitting on all my billions when the city I love crumbles under the footsteps of one man; one man who cannot be traced or tackled because of the constraints of the law. When my parents died I made them a promise to wipe out the crime and evil that ran deep in the city’s veins, it’s clear to me now that it’s going to take more than community projects to do so. I can’t do it alone though, I need help and resources that I know are buried deep within WE. We may have scrapped our weapons divisions but that doesn’t mean we don’t still have our inventory.” Bruce turned to face the man and was greeted by a look of utter confusion but one that turned to a look of conviction after Bruce had given all he’d said a chance to sink in. “You know Mister Pennyworth, I think you might just be right and no you can’t do it alone. Shall we take a trip to WE and see what we can find?”

Bruce stood high above the Gotham skyline, looking down upon the citizens of his city going about their business. In there, somewhere was the root of all evil in this city and now he was ready to take it on. During their development phase they had discussed many ideas for his armour and its aesthetics. Bruce had settled on a design route similar of that to a bat, they worked well in the dark and the design of his suit worked well to hide him in the city’s gothic architecture. His suit was a marvel of technology. It was made of an incredibly resilient, almost impervious metal that WE had come across many decades ago. His great-grandfather had named it Waynium, rather inconspicuously, and Lucius’ task force had found a way to enable it to appear almost out of thin air. Bruce was never seen without a small “WE” pendant hanging around his neck, most saw it as an extravagant display of power but its secret power was unknown to most. All Bruce had to do was tap it and it read his fingerprint, deploying the suit directly onto his body. The armour was only one layer thick but was completely impact resistant and bulletproof. The only colour on the suit was a small yellow outline around a black Bat shaped emblem on the chest of the suit.

Bruce hadn’t believed his eyes when Lucius presented the suit to him, the group of young African geniuses had done the impossible and given him the best protection with complete mobility, allowing him to take the fight to the evil. A cape accompanied the suit which allowed Bruce to be able to glide between buildings, and added to the intimidation factor. The only skin visible was a small patch around the mouth; Bruce had insisted that he be given the small patch to allow him a more human image, this way his opponents would know it was merely a man taking them on. Two peaks rose from the top of his mask, they also added to the look but had a more functional purpose. Inside the peaks say sensor units and communications arrays, meaning he could accurately recon the direct area around him and communicate with Alfred back in what was now called the Batcave not matter where he was on the earth.

A decade passed and Gotham was unrecognisable. As the years had gone by Bruce had found the need to create a purpose built psychiatric hospital, filled with staff that he approved of to rehabilitate the criminals he captured. The success rate was extremely high and several of the detainees had been successfully reintroduced into the population, one o which was a woman called Dr Harleen Quinzel who now worked as a psychiatrist at the unit. Bruce had also encountered two young men during his time as the Bat of Gotham; he had seen elements of his younger self in both of them and so had taken them under his wing both literally and metaphorically. The first had been a young boy called Richard Grayson, or Dick as he preferred to be called. The second was a troubled teenager called Jason Todd. He had adopted both of them and welcomed them into his family, whilst taking a lesson out of his father’s book and insisting they saw Dr Shirani and Dr Ulzbeck. The two boys had flourished under their counsel and Bruce had soon offered them the opportunity to join him on his crusade.

“Master Todd, will you be joining us for lunch today or would you like it to be brought to your room?” Alfred asked, peeping his head round the door to Jason’s room. “Oh Master Grayson, you’re here as well?” Dick smiled back at the aging butler. “Yeah sorry, Jason’s just helping me with some of my coursework. Could we both have our lunch here today, we’re making really good progress and I don’t want to stop.” A shy smile played over Dick’s face as Jason read through his essay. Dick was studying event management and was planning to take over the reins on Haly’s Circus when he was ready. Bruce had saved the circus from financial ruin a few years back and had presented the company to Dick shortly afterwards but Dick wanted to be able to run the company back into profit without just plying it with money so had decided to wait.

After lunch Jason made his way down to the drawing room where Bruce was. “Hey Dad, you got a second?” Bruce looked up and found his youngest son hanging around the door. “Of course Jay-lad,” he beckoned Jason into the room, saved his work and shut his tablet. Jason was rapidly approaching adulthood, faster that Bruce wanted to admit, and had been struggling up till now to decided what he wanted to do with his day life. Bruce had home schooled both boys as it worked better with their extracurricular activities, and cut down on kidnapping opportunities. Dick was now remote studying at University and he was proud of them both, something he made sure to tell them regularly.

“Dad I’ve been thinking and I’ve come to a decision about what I want to do.” Bruce smiled, “go on then son, what is it?” Jason look anxious, worried almost. “I just don’t want you to be disappointed in my choice, like I’m going against the choices you made for our lives.”

Bruce stood and walked around the grand desk and sat next to Jason, placing a hand gently upon his shoulder. “Jason, I could never be disappointed in you. This is YOUR life; I can’t choose what you want to do with it. The Red Hood was always just a part of your life and if you want to walk away from it that will never be a problem.” Jason winced slightly, “that’s not the part I was talking about. Dad, I want to be a teacher. I’ve been helping Dick for years, and I love it. I just don’t want you to think I’m going against your choice to home school us.” Bruce laughed gently and pulled Jason into a hug, “Jason you can’t understand how proud I am of your choice. I think you’d be an excellent teacher, and your students will be lucky to have you teach them about the world.” He felt Jason relax instantly and wrap his large arms around him for another hug.

Despite their studies both Dick and Jason continued their crime fighting duties. Dick had to move to his university however; to complete his course so decided to create a new alter-ego. Nightwing was born as he began to clean the streets of Blüdhaven with Bruce’s advice. WE built another hospital on Dick’s new turf to help those he apprehended. With the role of Robin now empty Jason stepped up to help cover part of Bruce’s patrol route, while still maintain his own route. Shortly afterwards though, they were approached by a young woman. The daughter of the police commissioner was well known to be an incredibly intelligent and tech savvy person. Bruce easily accepted her into what he now named the Bat-family. She had taken the mantle of Batgirl and was given her own personal suit; the first person outside the Pennyworth family to be given a Waynium suit. Barbara was an excellent addition to their team and they quickly became more and more effective. She loved working alongside the teenage African science team in addition to the crime aspect of her role. The purple and yellow theme of her suit was an excellent choice Bruce and Jason agreed, and they enjoyed working with their new partner, Barbara almost becoming a sister to Jason.

When Dick would return home from university he and Barbara began spending a lot of time together. Jason had been best man at their wedding and Bruce a very emotional father of the Groom. It had been the wedding event of the year as an heir to the Pennyworth fortune was marrying the daughter of the police commissioner. Their outfits bore subtle nods to their alter-egos and the wedding guests consisted of several of their crime fighting friends from across the world. The party afterwards was one for the history books, not only for its size and expense, but because a new relationship was formed there. Bruce had invited several reformed criminals whom he’d ended up following and assisting after their release. One in particular was an incredibly short but incredibly proficient killer who had gone by the handle of Ravager.

Rose Wilson was the daughter of legendary mercenary Slade Wilson and Jason had managed to take her down and bring her in. She had caught Bruce’s eye because of the amount of time Jason spent visiting her in the hospital, probably because of the similar abuse they suffered from their biological fathers in the past. A bond had grown between the two and it reached its peak at the reception. Jason had asked her to dance during a slow song and, predictably so, they ended up joined in a gentle kiss.

When Bruce returned to his drawing room that evening he pulled out his birth father’s favourite bottle of whiskey and poured himself a few fingers worth. “Care to share some?” Alfred silently entered the room as Bruce pulled out another glass and poured some of the amber liquid into it. “To Master Dick and Miss Barbara,” Alfred toasted. “Indeed,” Bruce agreed, “but that’s not what this is for. This is for our family; this is for the happiness that has grown in this manor from the sorrow and rage that began here all those moons ago. This is a toast to you Dad. Without that one courageous decision none of this would’ve been possible.”

“I couldn’t agree more,” Jason’s voice shocked them as he’d picked up his father’s habit of arriving and disappearing without warning. “All the happiness and love in this family stems from you Alfie, and we don’t know what we’d do without you.” Dick and Barbara moved round the door to join them all in the drawing room. Bruce quickly poured a few more glasses and distributed them. “To family,” Bruce declared, “to love”.


End file.
